


Curious Archer

by CurlyAkemy



Series: Curious Archer [1]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alice & Robin, Curious Archer - Freeform, Cute, F/F, Fluff, Getting to Know Each Other, Love, Mad Archer, Made For Each Other, True Love's Kiss
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-25
Updated: 2018-04-25
Packaged: 2019-04-27 16:29:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,173
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14429613
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CurlyAkemy/pseuds/CurlyAkemy
Summary: My telling of Alice and Robin coming together in the Enchanted Forest before the curse. Double Stuff Cutesy Fluff. I ship these two so hard now and though they deserved a story.Feed the Author. Let me know what you think. Jedi mind tricking you to Push the Kudos Button.





	Curious Archer

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: There is a scene where an animal is killed for food. Absolutely nothing graphic.

** Curious Archer **

Alice had just finished hanging the curtains in her little cabin when there was a knock at the door. Not one to have visitors in her neck of the woods, she was curious as to who was calling. She opened the door and a wide smile came instantly to her face at the woman before her.

“Nobin!”

“Ugh, what do I have to do to get you to stop calling me that?” Robin winked at her, please to make her friend blush.

“Ah, you know I’m just jesting. Come in,” Alice opened the door wider to let her visitor in. “What brings you by?”

“Actually, your father.” Robin opened her satchel and pulled a sealed letter out to hand to her friend. “I told him I was going out for a scouting hike and he asked if I’d bring you this.”

Alice took the letter like a child receiving candy. Her impossibly large smile widening at seeing her father’s writing. She was about to open the letter when she paused.

“Oh how rude of me. Please sit down,” Alice motioned to a small table for two by her pot belly stove. “Would you like some tea?”

Robin saw Alice gripping her father’s letter, obviously anxious to open it. She pulled out a chair, “How about I fix us the tea and you sit and read your letter?”

Alice shuffled her feet and bit her lip for a moment, “Are you sure? That would be very kind of you.”

“I’m positive,” she motioned for the chair again, and tucked Alice in as she sat.

Robin went about filling the kettle with water from a pitcher, all the while watching her companion out of the corner of her eye. The warm smile that came to Alice’s features was one she knew was reserved for the girl’s father. She had seen it before whenever Alice spook of Nook. A man that was vastly different than the Hook married to the sheriff back home.

The Hook she knew in Storybrooke was equally liked and disliked by their community. He was not shy when it came to the bottle and being outspoken about his disdain for their small town. It seemed to her that the sheriff was constantly apologizing to people whenever he’d go on a bender. Their own daughter, even though very young, seemed almost ashamed to walk by his side.

The Hook she’s been working alongside of in the realm was kinder. He genuinely wanted to help others and lived for his daughter. He had been trying so hard to find away to break the cure on his heart, all so he could hold his child. It was a thought that warmed her heart and broke it all at once.

Robin was startled when the kettle began to whistle. She went to take the kettle off the stove, not thinking to grab a towel for the hot metal. She jumped back with a loud curse when her hand burned. Alice was instantly at her side, taking her hand.

“I don’t know about your world, love, but in this one, hot metal burns.” Alice gave Robin a crooked grin, receiving one in kind with a roll of her eyes. “Wait here.”

Alice shook her head at her with a cute smile before moving to step outside. While she was out, Robin pulled down the tea cups with her good hand and placed them on the table. Taking a towel she found this time, and pouring their tea. Her hand was pulsating and red.

Alice came back in, taking out a small knife from its sheath on her belt. “Go on and sit down. Let me see your hand.”

Robin watched intriguingly as Alice used her knife to split open a thick plant in her hand. It looked almost like a cactus of sort, but she had never seen it in her trips into the woods. When Alice peeled back the skin, the inside had a slimy clear center.

“What is that?” Robin asked a bit in disgust.

“Capiroatara,” Alice answered like it was obvious.

“Okay, I have no idea what that is, hon.” Robin laughed kindly.

Alice took Robin’s hand and gently began putting the slimy substance on the burned area, “Capiroatara is a plant that is not native to these woods actually so probably wouldn’t know it. I grow it in my garden. It’s very good for several things like sores, cuts and burns.”

Once she had rubbed a good amount of the salve onto Robin’s hand, she moved to her dresser drawer and pulled out a small scarf. She returned to the table and began to gently wrap the injured hand.

She tucked the last of the material into the back of Robin’s hand, “There we go. You should be right as rain by tomorrow. But if it still hurts or looks worse, you come back and I’ll put more on there for you, okay?”

Robin meant to respond, but the gentle touches to her hand that was still being held between Alice’s hands made her heart stop. When Alice met her eyes, she held back a gasp that threatened to escape.

“I will thanks,” she finally managed.

To her disappointment Alice released her hands to reach for their tea.

“Thank you for putting the kettle on while I read my Papa’s letter. That was very kind of you,” Alice gave her another enamored smile.

“It was no problem at all. I know how much your father missed you. I can’t imagine how much you miss him,” Robin reached out with her good hand and squeezed the hand Alice had on the table. “He’s really been looking for a cure, you know.”

Alice smirked, trying to hold tears back, “I know. He says in the letter that he’s been trying. It is a bit hard, especially because growing up, he was all I had, you know. Whenever I had a nightmare or hurt myself, Papa would scoop me up in his arms and sing me a chantey.”

“My mom used to sing to me too,” Robin chuckled. “But don’t tell her I told you. She’d kill me if anyone knew she could sing. My aunt Regina and her still tease each other about a singing curse that hit Storybrooke when I was a baby.”

“A singing curse?” Alice brightened. “That actually sounds kind of wonderful.”

“Not if you’ve ever seen Buffy,” Robin sighed with a laugh. At Alice’s confused expression, she explained, “Sorry it was a show where I’m from, about a teenage vampire slayer and her friends. There was an episode where they were attacked by a dancing and singing demon that cast a curse that made everyone dance and sing until they died.”

“Well it sounded wonderful ‘til then,” Alice laughed. “Your world sounds pretty bazaar I must say. And I’ve been to Wonderland.”

Robin was taken aback, “So wait, you really are the Alice from Wonderland? Like in the book?”

“Book?” Alice’s face scrunched into a questioning expression.

Robin had to chuckle at the girl, “You are too adorable.”

Alice’s confusion turned into giddiness at Robin’s words and the girls in turn blushed, smiling endlessly at each other.

“Well, tower girl. In my world there is a book called ‘Alice in Wonderland’ and it’s a story of a girl from our world that falls down a rabbit hole into another world. It follows her through her adventures in Wonderland with the Mad Hatter and fighting the Queen of Hearts.” Robin realized that she had yet to let go of Alice’s hand, but the girl didn’t seem to mind.

“Sounds close enough, but why on earth would I go through a rabbit hole. That would be entirely too small.” Alice’s face once again scrunched at her nose.

“I always questioned that myself,” Robin tried to take a sip of her tea, but it proved hard with her injured hand.

“Oh, silly me. I was holding your hand hostage wasn’t I?” Alice released Robin’s good hand and took hold of her own tea to sip. “Drink yours before it gets too cold.”

Robin’s hand already missed Alice’s, “Yes of course.”

“And people liked this book? My book?” Alice asked in amazement.

“They do. It’s considered a classic. There’s even a cartoon movie about it, but not nearly accurate to the story in the book, though,” Robin informed her.

“What is a cartoon movie?” Alice asked, resting her head on her hands and resting her elbows on the table.

“Picture hand drawings that move on their own to tell a story,” Robin leaned back in her chair.

“Curiouser and curiouser,” She smiled like a child in wonderment. “I think your world sounds amazing, Robin.”

Robin smiled brightly, “You said my name.”

Alice gave her a bashful toothy grin, “I suppose you can’t really be New Robin, if I never met the old Robin. So you can’t really be Nobin. At least not Nobin to me. So I promise I shall call you Robin from now on.”

“You can call me anything you want.” Robin accidently thought out loud after the girl’s lovable babble. “I mean, thank you.”

“No problem, Robin,” She smiled kindly.

Robin took a deep breath, hating the thought of having to leave this cute girl’s company, “I hate to say this, but I need to get going if I’m going to make it back to camp before dark. I have just enough time if you want to send word to your Papa.”

“Yes! Please, hang on,” Alice stood and scrabbled for parchment and quill.

Robin watched as Alice sat back at the table to quickly write her father a letter. The girl’s tongue stuck out of the side of her mouth, and the cutest little wrinkle creased her forehead as she carefully drafted the letter. When she was done, she carefully folded the letter, holding her hands over it like she was enchanting the parchment with her feelings before handing it to Robin.

“Thank you for bringing the letter, Robin. I truly appreciate it. I know my Papa does too.” Alice stood and walked Robin out to the front porch.

“It’s not a problem at all,” Robin paused at the top of the steps. “It gives me an excuse to come visit my friend.”

“You have another friend in these woods?” Alice asked curiously.

“I meant you,” Robin chuckled, taping Alice on the head with her letter.

“Oh,” Alice smiled bashfully.

Robin lifted her wrapped hand, “Maybe I can come by tomorrow and you can take a look at this? I don’t think I could properly shoot an arrow if it’s not taken care of. Then where will I be?”

“Yes, of course.” Alice straightened, “But, if I am your friend, then you don’t need an excuse to come visit. You can come by any time.”

A wisp of hair came into Alice’s face, and before she could reach for it herself, Robin lifted a hand to tuck it behind her ear. Much like the moment they had in the dungeon, Robin’s hand lingered on Alice’s cheek.

“I’ll see you tomorrow?” Robin asked shyly after reluctantly dropping her hand.

“Yes!” Alice nearly shouted, rocking on her heels with her wide smile.

**********

“Son of a Bandersnatch!”

Robin heard Alice scream when she was still a few yards away from the clearing to her cabin. She froze, quickly drawing her bow and pulling an arrow from her quiver. With her burned hand aching, she aimed in front of her scanning the woods for trouble and saw nothing immediately in her sights. Keeping the bow and arrow in hand, she began to run toward Alice’s home.

She had just reached the clearing when she spotted Alice yelling seemingly at the sky, “See if I ever help you out again. Useless animal!”

Robin stowed her arrow and leaned against a tree, watching in bemusement as Alice threw a rock in the air, then squealed to run away before it landed on her.

“What did the clouds ever do to you?” She called out to get the girls attention.

Surprised, Alice turned on her heel and fell over. Robin quickly ran to her side.

“You alright tower girl?” Robin kneeled by her.

Alice lowered her head to hide her flushed face with her long mane of gold colored hair.

“Hey,” Robin gently tapped her chin to look up at her. “Are you hurt?”

“No,” Alice whispered, lifting her face but not looking at Robin. “Just a bit embarrassed.”

“Nothing to be embarrassed about, sweetie. As long as you’re okay.”

Robin surprised herself with the endearment, not knowing what possessed her. Alice’s toothy smile appeared at the endearment, reassuring Robin that her fumble had been a good thing.

“I’m alright. Promise.” Alice took Robin’s offered hands to help her to her feet.

“Who were you yelling at?” Robin took another look around the grounds, and then the sky since that seemed to be the offender.

“I was yelling at the stupid owl,” Alice half yelled toward the trees. She pointed toward her garden were vegetable looked to have been uprooted and half eaten. “I had a long talk with him about keeping the rabbits out of my garden and I came out to this mess. What good is an owl that doesn’t keep animals away?”

“But owls don’t eat rabbits, Alice. They eat field mice.”

“Oh,” Alice’s nose scrunched endearingly.

Robin walked toward the garden and began helping Alice throw the ruined veggies off to the side. “We can always start a compose pile with the eaten vegetables. It would make for great soil to replant.”

“I have one!” Alice said cheerfully, pointing over to a pile set back between the trees behind her cabin.

“Perfect. Then let me help you clean this up. No more yelling at owls, okay?”  Robin shot Alice a wink and the two cleaned up the garden.

“What should I do about the rabbit?”

“Well, that depends,” Robin wiped her hands together, getting rid of the dirt. “Do you like rabbit stew?”

They shared knowing smiles, and when Alice nodded Robin motioned toward the trees. The pair hid behind a fallen tree that gave them a perfect view of the garden from a good distance away. They were shoulder to shoulder, searching the clearing for signs of the nuisance.

“Can you really shoot from this far away?” Alice whispered.

Robin psshed, “I could hit a snail on your front porch from here.”

They turned to each other at the same time, neither realizing how close they were until their noses nearly hit.

“Sorry,” Alice shied but did not move.

“It’s alright,” Robin smirked, also not pulling away.

Their eyes seemed to take liberties looking at the other’s facial features. They scanned every freckle, every crease, and every inch of each other’s lips. When they were just a breath away from each other, they jumped back at a loud snap. Robin grabbed one of the arrows she had propped up against the log and aimed toward the garden. Her eyes squinting she looked for movement.

“Just a hair to the right of one o’clock,” Alice whispered.

With a low whistle, the arrow sprang forward.

“Yes!” Alice screamed.

“Got ‘em!” Robin yelped as she was tackled to the ground.

Alice in her excitement had moved to hug Robin, toppling them over onto the ground with her on top of the archer. She lifted her torso off of Robin, but stayed over her, canopying their faces with her hair. Robin once again lifted her hand to push it back only to leave her hand cupping the girl’s cheek. As their lips drew close, they heard a loud screech.

Their eyes grew wide and in unison they yelled, “Hawk!”

Jumping to their feet, they ran toward the garden and saw a hawk circling above their lunch. Alice waved her hands in the air to shoo the bird of prey away, and Robin went to get the rabbit from the patch.

“Not today, Mr. Hawk! This is our lunch!” Alice yelled up to the hawk, turning when she heard her companion laughing. “What?”

“Nothing. You tell ‘em.” Robin shot her a wink and held up their prize, “Why don’t you get the stew going and I’ll prep this guy.”

They worked together in the small cabin, prepping their lunch. Not really speaking but enjoying the quiet ease between them as they worked around the stove. By the time their stew was nearly ready, Robin excused herself to visit the outhouse.

“You know, there are definitely some things I miss from back home. Indoor plumbing tops that list,” Robin paused as she re-entered the cabin.

The small little kitchen table had a scarf thrown across is as a make-shift table cloth. In the middle was an empty goblet that held a handful of wild flowers. Robin’s face lit up at the setting and she looked to her suddenly shy friend as she bounced on her haunches.

When Robin didn’t speak, Alice wavered, “I thought I’d make things a bit nicer for us to enjoy our meal. It’s silly, I know. I shouldn’t have assumed-.”

“I love it,” Robin interrupted her worry and sincerely added, “I think it’s perfect.”

“Yeah?” Alice’s smile returned.

“Yeah,” Robin held out her hand to Alice, her heart jumping when she didn’t hesitate to take it.

Robin escorted her to the table and pulled out the chair for her, tucking it in as Alice sat before going to the stove to pour the stew into bowls for them. Once the bowls were set and she took her seat, she lifted her cup of water to Alice for a toast.

“What shall we toast to?” Robin asked with a sly smile.

Alice thought about it for a moment, “To new friends and new adventures.”

“Cheers,” Robin nodded in agreement.

They ate in comfortable peace, speaking about their past adventures in different realms. Robin talked about the Wonderland from the books she read as a child, and Alice had fun telling her how close to the truth certain things were. Telling the archer about the plants and people she had run into and learned from.

When they finished with lunch, Alice pulled out a kit she had prepared to treat Robin’s hand. They moved out to the chairs on her porch for her to have better lighting. Washing away the remnants of the salve from the day before, Alice softly stroked the skin of Robin’s hand and wrist, not noticing the effect she had on the taller girl.

“I don’t think you need more salve honestly. Look,” Alice lifted eyes to Robin, noticing for the first time how close she was to her. She took a calming breath, “Good as new.”

Robin dropped eyes from Alice’s lips to her own hand, surprised that the angry welt that had been there the day before was nothing more than a then pinkish line across her palm. “That’s amazing. It was a little sore earlier when I was using my bow, but now.”

Robin flexed and stretched her hand, feeling for any pulling or pain and there was none. Alice put her things back into a sack since they were not needed, and sat back in her rocking chair. Robin followed suit in her chair. They sat in comfortable silence looking toward the forest ahead of them and enjoying the sounds of the animals hidden in their midst.

“It’s going to start getting dark soon,” Robin said sadly.

Alice turned sad eyes to her, “I suppose you’ll have to head out then.”

“Yeah,” Robin turned to her with a crooked reluctant grin, “But I don’t want to. I like being here.”

Alice beamed, “I like having you here too.”

The stood and Robin retrieve her bow and quiver where she had propped them against the cabin. Alice followed her the couple of steps down off the porch and the stood awkwardly in front of each other for a moment before they seemed to move at once to hug each other. Alice draped her arms around Robin’s neck, while Robin’s arms wrapped around her waist. Robin moved her head to tuck Alice’s under her chin and held her close for a moment before releasing her.

She slid her hands down Alice’s arms to her hands and squeezed them before stepping away. “I’ll see you soon?” 

“I hope so. I quiet enjoy your company,” Alice shied.

“Me too,” Robin reached to squeeze the girls shoulder, smiling lovingly before stepping back and moving on her way home.

**********

Over the following weeks, Robin visited Alice as often as she could. For her, it had stopped being about delivering letters from Hook, and more an insistent need to see the cute blonde haired girl that had kicked up her heartbeat. Each time she visited she would bring a letter and/or a gift for Alice. She’d bring her wild flowers, sweet fruits, or brightly colored scarves that Alice hung in her cabin for decoration. Anything she could think of to see that beautiful smile.

They’d spend their time together talking while either sitting on the rocking chairs on the front porch, or walking around the woods together. Alice had even taken to holding Robin’s hand or arm on their walks too, making them both blush every time.

On one of Robin’s visits, she had decided to wear her hair down instead of in a braid. Alice had forgotten how to speak as she stared at the sunlight shining through the locks like a halo around her head. When Robin would catch her staring, she would giggle nervously and quickly avert her eyes.

After they had eaten lunch that day, Robin had asked Alice if she wouldn’t mind braiding it for her, and the girl’s enthusiastic response had made her heart happy. Before starting the braid, Alice had taken the liberty to run her fingers through Robin’s hair, taking a couple of turns to massage Robin’s scalp and eliciting loud moans from her. Robin had to excuse herself to go home immediately after, not trusting her body to remain calm.

Their hellos and goodbyes began to linger longer with each visit after that. Robin would pull Alice in for a hug and hold her like she was the dearest thing on earth. Alice in turn, would nuzzle into Robin’s neck and breath her in, trying to engrain her scent to memory. Both shied away from showing any other signs of affection, though. Each afraid that anything pass an occasional kiss on the cheek would break the closeness they had developed since meeting on the Troll hunt.

This was not to say that they had not caught themselves loosing time staring at each other’s lips or into their eyes. Like on a beautifully blue sky day, filled with big fluffy white clouds. Alice had taken Robin to her ‘Thinking Spot’ set in the middle of a knoll full of tall green grass. They lay shoulder to shoulder, pointing out what shapes they saw in the clouds.

Without realizing, the spotting and pointing had brought them physically closer together. Robin had turned to look at her, and their noses crashed into each other. The giggling that ensued made them turn their bodies toward each other, both stopping to stare as they were a breath away. Alice leaned into the hand that cupped her cheek, knowing it was coming as it always had when they were that close. They had spent the rest of their time on the knoll, smiling silently at each other while Robin stroked her cheek, and Alice played with Robin’s necklace.

**********

A full week had passed since Alice had last heard from Robin. Only ever missing her father’s presence before, she felt silly for missing Robin as much as she did. Yet she found herself sitting on her front porch more often than before, searching the woods for signs of Robin. She also catered to her garden for longer periods of time, and even walked the woods for longer distances towards her father’s camp. All of this in hopes of catching a glimpse of her friend.

After the lonely week passed, she decided to done her robe and took a basket full of veggies from her garden, setting off toward the camp. She knew she had to keep her distance from her father but that didn’t mean that she couldn’t go at all. When she reached the camp, she spotted Henry and Jacinda playing with their baby, Lucy.

“Alice,” Henry waved her over. “How have you been?”

“Hello. I’ve been alright, thanks,” Alice smiled kindly. “Look at your little one. She’s getting so big.”

She crouched to greet the baby girl who was teetering on her unsteady chubby little legs. Alice made a goofy face at her, making the baby clap and point at her with a loud gurgle.

“I think she likes you,” Jacinda laughed as their daughter seemed to baby talk at Alice like she was speaking to her.

“Baby’s are easy to please. It’s adults I have problems with,” Alice joked making them laugh. “I brought some fresh vegetables from my garden. I thought you lot could use it.”

“You would be right about that,” Jacinda picked up Lucy and placed her on her hip. “Come on. Let’s take it to the cooking tent.”

The group walked through the camp to the far side. People nodded or smiled at Alice in greeting, and the girl smiled in kind.

“I’m afraid you just missed your father, Alice. He went with Zelena and my Mom on errand to the next village over.” Henry filled her in.

“Oh. That’s alright. I’ll catch him next time.” Alice felt guilty that her seeing her father had not been her main objective in going there. Attempting to show indifference, she inquired, “Is Robin around?”

Henry and Jacinda exchanged curious smiles, knowing that the behavior of Zelena’s daughter had also noticeably changed since beginning to visit with Alice. They had been trying to piece the puzzle together.

“I’m not sure. She and a few archers went on a hunting trip for the camp,” Jacinda informed her. “They’ve been going out all week, trying to stock up our supplies.”

“Looks like they are back,” Henry motioned toward the dinning tent, where a number of men and woman sat eating.

He and his wife grinned as Alice eagerly searched through the crowd. Her face lit up when she spotted Robin slouched in her seat, looking sadly disinterested in the food on her plate.

“Aww, she looks so sad,” Alice commiserated.

It was at that moment that Robin looked up and saw Alice. A wide smile spread across her features as she pushed her plate aside and got to her feet, practically running toward them.

“Not anymore apparently,” Henry murmured, receiving an elbow to his gut from Jacinda. He turned to her, “What?”

His wife shook her head, silently warning him to keep quiet as the two girls met half way, now out of ear shot.

“Are you seeing what I’m seeing, Henry?” She asked her husband, readjusting a finicky baby on her hip. “Do you think the two of them…?”

“I would have never thought so before, but looking at them now,” Henry chuckled. “A lot of those huntsmen are going to be severely disappointed that Robin’s not available.”

“What do you mean, not available?” Came a voice behind them, and they turned to see Zelena, Regina and Hook.

Zelena stood with hands on her hips, looking pass them at her daughter talking to Alice. When Hook followed her gaze, he too lifted his brows at their daughters standing so close to each other.

“What is Alice doing here?” Hook looked her over from that distance for any visible signs of trouble.

“She’s just visiting. She brought us vegetables from her garden,” Jacinda pointed out the basket in the girl’s hand.

Alice had just reached in to retrieve a large carrot, handing it to Robin who instantly bit into it with a toothy smile.

“Is she alright?” Hook asked.

“Alright? She looks completely smitten if you ask me,” Regina chuckled, earning worried glares from her sister and Hook. “What? Look at them. They are clearly taken by each other.”

“I think my Mom’s right. The instant we told Alice that you weren’t here, Hook. She asked after Robin,” Henry grinned.

Jacinda looped her arm through her husband’s and added, “You should have seen Robin before she spotted Alice, too. She was playing with the food on her plate, clearly moping. Then boom, both their faces lit up and they practically ran to each other. Alice didn’t even say goodbye to me and Henry.”

Alice looked toward them and caught their audience. She spotted her Papa and waved enthusiastically, but keeping her distance. He smiled widely and waved back at her.

“I think we may have a little puppy love on our hands,” Regina teased.

“I don’t know about puppies, Regina. They’re young, but they are grown women.” Jacinda handed Lucy to her, “I think you’re right, though. I think they may be in love.”

“In Love!?” Zelena and Hook both snapped together. Their attention went to Jacinda, then their daughters, and then to each other.

“Ten bucks says its True Love,” Henry smirked, crossing his arms.

“What?” Zelena’s eyes were wide in bewilderment.

“I couldn’t bet against that when I agree. Plus, we never bet against True Love, right Lucy?” Regina cooed at the baby, then suddenly gasped, getting everyone’s attention. Laughing she said, “A thought just occurred to me thinking about True Love and those two idiots back home.”

“Mom,” Henry warned, knowing she was speaking of the Charmings.

Regina turned to Lucy with a hearty laugh, “They’re your GREAT Grandparents.”

Zelena mused, “Well technically, sis, you were Snow’s step-mother. So you would be Lucy’s-.”

“Hush your mouth,” Regina snapped at her sister, making them all laugh.

“What’s so funny?” Alice and Robin approached but kept a safe distance between them and Hook.

“Nothing, Starfish. Just collectively feeling old, that’s all,” Hook smiled kindly at his daughter. “How have you been?”

Alice beamed, “Great Papa. I hadn’t heard from you or Robin in a while so I thought I’d come visit you all for a change. How have you been?”

“I’ve been well, love.” Hook smiled lovingly at his daughter, trying to mask the pain he was beginning to feel in his chest. “What are you two up to?”

Hook gave Robin a sincere smile, clearly seeing what everyone had been talking about. He knew from the many letters Robin delivered to him on behalf of Alice, that his daughter had taken a shine to her. He had been glad for the friendship, as it ensured him that his daughter was not lonely out at her cabin. His interest was piqued as to what exactly they did on their visits now that it was clear that this was not just a friendship.

“I was actually just telling Robin that there is going to be a meteor shower tonight, and invited her to come home with me for the show, and maybe stay the night.” Alice said excitedly.

If the girls had actually paid attention to the others around them, they would have seen a mixture of worried and amused expressions. Zelena and Robin exchanged worried looks.

“Can’t you see it from here?” Zelena tried.

“Mom,” Robin started.

“I suppose we could, but the best place to see a shower is away from any and all light. I think with the campfires around here, it would be a little harder.” Alice hadn’t caught on to everyone’s worry, and looked around the camp. “At my cabin, it gets pitch dark, and I have a field nearby that’s perfect for stargazing.”

Hook’s heart ached in part from the curse and having her so close, and also at his daughter’s pure innocence. “Alright then, love. If you say your place is better for viewing, then you two have fun.”

Zelena looked at him open mouth, but quickly recovered. Like him, she knew that Alice was an innocent that would never take advantage of Robin. Her daughter on the other hand was what really worried her. Although she would always fear for her daughter’s safety, she couldn’t argue that she would be safe with Alice.

“Alright then,” she conceded, receiving a surprised look from Robin. “Just don’t stay away too long, okay. Remember we have plans to go back to our farm in a couple of days to look after things.”

“I remember. I’ll be back before then, promise.” Robin lunged at her mother and hugged her.

Alice gave her father a sad smile, “I’ll walk her back then, and come say hi. Okay, Papa.”

“Okay, love.” Hook nodded, “You two be safe.”

**********

“So how did you know there was going to be a shower tonight?” Robin asked as she repositioned the large blankets under one arm, and the pillows under the other.

“I read it in a book I have, a long time ago. It always happens around this time of season and there are signs you can look for. The stars are something I’ve always been fascinated with. Ever since I was a littl’in.” Alice carried a large picnic basket in her hands, leading their way up the grassy knoll. “My Papa used to bring me nautical books when I was still living in that tower. It taught me a lot about the stars and how they guided sailors at sea. I used to have a telescope too. I would use it to find different constellations, but it was destroyed when I escaped.”

Robin made a mental note to search the ends of the earth for another telescope for her.

“That’s pretty amazing,” She said as she laid out one of the blankets at their spot on the knoll, throwing the pillows in the middle. “I guess I never much paid attention to the stars before. Although in Storybrooke, we could see a lot of them at night. It’s a small town so not too many city lights to get in the way.”

“And you said it was by the sea?” Alice asked, sitting cross legged on the blanket and pulling out the snacks she had packed for them.

“Yeah, we even had our own little harbor and shipping yard. Although they were kind of useless since nothing could come in or out of our city limits,” Robin moved down on her side facing Alice and took a small grape tomato, popping it into her mouth. “The ships can’t go that far out.”

“Oh, that’s one thing I’m dying to do. I want to go out on my Papa’s ship. I’ve read that the stars over the earth are nothing compared to over the ocean,” Alice smiled in that far off way she did when her imagination ran free. “That the stars reflect off the water so you can’t tell which way is up and which way is down. Imagine seeing the moon rise over the water, only to see it sink below at the same time.”

When Alice looked back down at Robin, she shied at the look of adoration reflected upon her.

“Sounds wonderful,” Robin smiled sincerely. “Can I come with?”

Alice’s crooked grin answered for her as she moved to mirror Robin’s position on the blanket. “You have to come with me. You see I’ve decided that nothing could possibly be an adventure without you.”

Alice seemed to shy at her own words, but Robin did not let her drop her gaze. Her hand found its second home on Alice’s cheek, but this time she pulled her forward. Their lips meeting like two magnets drawn naturally to each other.

A blast of color and light emanated from the spot where their lips met, lighting up the dark knoll. Neither girl paid attention to the blast, nor the stars that began to fall from the sky above them, as their kiss deepened. Their legs intertwined and Alice began to fall backwards with Robin over her, when she felt plates under her bum and squished something. Her body jumped forward, toppling herself over Robin instead and pulling away to laugh.

“I think I landed on the tomatoes and cheese,” Alice giggled

She reached back to pull off the remnants of the food stuck to her clothes. Holding up a handful of smashed food, making the two laughed harder. Alice tossed the mess aside, grinning down at Robin who laid out flat with one arm behind her head.

“You’re very beautiful, Robin. I don’t think I’ve ever told you that before.”

Robin’s crooked grin called to Alice, and she bent forward to reunite their lips briefly.

“You’re also an excellent kisser.”

Robin pulled her back to her lips, attempting to silence her again, but Alice pulled back again.

“What do you think that blast was?”

Kiss.

“We’re missing the meteors.”

Kiss.

“Goodness you’re really good at that.”

The rest was silence.

 


End file.
